


Winding Ourselves Up For The Fall

by kransp



Series: What Are We Doing Here? [2]
Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: Angst, F/M, Friends With Benefits, Jealousy, Love Confessions
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-06-13
Packaged: 2020-04-06 17:38:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 5,926
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19067422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kransp/pseuds/kransp
Summary: Follows: Whatever You WantNo actual smutLots of breaking their rules





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Rules in her head in the first story were not sent to him in the same order as this story, which since they were sent a few days later seems totally reasonable to me... 
> 
> I really thought I was going to write this all in a day or so and post it all at once like I did the first part... and I really wanted there to be smut... and for the smut to be motorcycle-y... but I cannot write motorcycle smut, sorry, I know it can be done, but I have little experience writing smut and less experience with motorcycles and I keep imagining it falling over on them and that is NOT the story I want to tell... so the motorcycle smut is, at least for now, going to be left to your imaginations... while I write the rest and maybe I can come back to it when I am ready. If I don't work around it though I will be stuck here indefinitely.
> 
> If I do write that I will post it separately so you don't have to wonder if you missed it.
> 
> Please forgive my creative liberties with the timeline for the Day of the Dead episode... it's a bit out of order, and I am sorry, but I didn't think it worked as well when I tried to keep that in order.
> 
> Thank You sentichefuoripiove for help with the translations again :)

_Rule 5) No touching, staring, smirking, or innuendo at work_

She doesn't even know why she bothered. She had known that no staring and no smirking are pretty much impossible to reinforce. Though she had thought they could at least attempt some decorum... but he's a very tactile person, touch is important with him, and while he's pretty good about not being overtly obvious in the middle of the halls he takes advantage of any stairwell, elevator, or semi private moment to at least brush her hand, or tuck her hair behind her ear, a lingering kiss if there is time... the innuendo though is a problem she hadn't anticipated really being a problem. However he's quick witted and some of the things he has managed to ask, worded as an innocent sounding question to bystanders, are quite impressive. If she wanted to encourage that sort of behavior... It could be very distracting, but at least he understood the line and was careful not to pull that during surgeries. The sex might be good, but it wasn't worth risking a patient's well being. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Rule 4) I have 3 kids, I don't go anywhere on a motorcycle_

He's very respectful of this rule. So much so that after a month she finally breaks down...

Almost all of their rendezvous are at his place, It's a lot nicer than she had expected it to be. Meredith finds it comfortable, though she wouldn't admit that if anyone had asked. She hasn't fallen asleep yet, but if it does happen she doesn't have to worry about him trying to sneak out without her kids noticing him. His neighbors have been in Georgia for two months, so they never have to worry about being quiet and he has the garage to himself while they are gone. She can park her car inside, not that she thinks anyone would recognize it AND know it's DeLuca's place, but she appreciates the ability to be discreet.

It's been a few days since they've had any time together and Meredith is getting restless. Their schedules were not working in their favor... So today, with only a short window between his shift and hers she is parked in his garage, waiting for him... and he's running late. She has just decided that she doesn't have time for this when he finally pulls in. Meredith gets out of her car, figuring she can at least let him know she isn't staying.

He shuts off the bike and removes his helmet and smiles at her. He starts to dismount when she puts her hand on his arm and shakes her head. "I've only got a few minutes before I have to leave"

"I am so sorry Mer, I didn't m-"

She cuts him off with a kiss "Don't be sorry, work fast"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

 _Rule 3) No sex at work_

Meredith had assumed her days of supply closet and on-call room meet ups were long over with. She had more self control than that... but both of her sisters were gone constantly lately to Jackson and Owen's places so her free time had nearly disappeared, and the idea of letting Andrew come over again, especially so soon after getting him off her couch, was not what she considered reasonable. Which is why she had found herself paging him to a supply closet one late shift.

"Dr. Grey?" he asks with some confusion as he enters.

"Lock the damned door"

"Mer?"

She sighs "It's been more than two weeks Andrew. Lock the freaking door"

The 'one time' in the supply closet of course doesn't remain a one time deal, and before long she isn't sure there is an on call room or supply closet they haven't at least made out in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Rule 2) We are not dating. When it stops being fun it ends._

This was, she insisted, to both of their benefits. She doesn't want a relationship. If he finds someone he wants to be in a relationship with, or would just rather sleep with than her all he has to do is say so. 

She isn't going to stand around being jealous or anything. Even if every time a patient, or their mother, or a cute scrub nurse smiles at him her insides burn a little... until two minutes later when he catches her eye and his smile is only for her and at the next possible opportunity she has him back in the nearest on call room. After the it's-not-jealousy quickies she always feels a little more guilty. She can see the look he's been giving her lately. She knows where it's leading, and she isn't ready. 

The fact that her heart melts a little whenever she sees him interacting with the pediatric patients only strengthens her resolve to not get attached. He's great with kids, he'd make an excellent father... and he deserves to find someone to have a family with. Yeah, maybe he'd be good with her kids, almost certainly he would be even... but she can't stop picturing him with one of his own... and if she's not ready for an actual commitment, there is no way in hell she's ready to think about that... Of course she can't talk to him about it. Talking about it would be an admission that more is happening.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

She thinks Richard intends to call her out on the inappropriate work sex thing when he sits her down to talk. Somehow it isn't though... Her father is dying. Thatcher is dying. She shouldn't care. She tells everyone it doesn't matter... but somehow it does... 

She throws herself into her case. She can't deal with her father, him dying, or their crappy relationship, but she can help this little girl. The fact that Andrew can stand there and be so kind and perfect and unflappable, and even willing to give up a shot at a "cool" surgery he had been looking forward to, just to make Flor happy, somehow agitates her mood more. 

Then the new ortho guy stops her in the hall and asks her to dinner again "I don't date" she knows it sounds snarky, but she isn't in the mood for any of this right now.

"But you do eat right?" Link suggests "Jo seems to think we'd have fun"

She sighs and looks at him "This is really not a great day" 

"I will have to catch you on a better one then" he says as he winks and walks away.

"That's not what I meant" she halfheartedly calls after him, sighing as she realizes she'll have to deal with his unwanted advances another day.

Andrew appears beside her, his hand brushing the small of her back briefly "Puoi semplicemente dirgli che stai uscendo con qualcuno" he offers (You could just tell him you're seeing someone)

"Don't do that" forget snarky, now her tone has gone to downright bitchy. She hates that she's being like this.

"Do what Mered-"

"Dr. DeLuca!" she cuts him off "If you can't be professional..."

He steps back, confused and a little hurt. Meredith turns and starts to leave when he remembers that he has a job and there was a legitimate reason he had tracked her down to begin with "Dr. Grey"

She turns back to him ready to read him the riot act, but he doesn't even let her get started "Flor's parents would like to speak with you again, and Mrs. Henderson is back, she refuses to speak to anyone but you" he hands her the chart he was holding and walks off.

As the rest of the day goes by he realizes Meredith is actively avoiding him and it pisses him off a little. It isn't even subtle. When she gets paged and 30 seconds later he gets a page from Maggie to ask about a patient she knows he has a good rapport with it was unusual. The second time she gets paged to his location and Alex snags him to come meet another kid it might be a coincidence, but after the third time, which is to Shepherd's lab because of a 'misdial' he isn't buying any of it any more. 

He sends her a text. 'I can give you space if you need it, please stop sidetracking me from actually getting my job done. Do you want to come over and talk tonight?' her response comes back faster than he expected, just one word 'No'. He sighs, of course not. 

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After work Andrew had decided to grab a drink. He was contemplating more, but he knows he gets sad and sappy drunk and he doesn't need alcohol for that tonight. Instead he spends a couple hours playing darts and hanging out before heading home. He's surprised when he gets there to find her sitting on his steps.

He stops a few feet away, closes his eyes for a moment and tries to quell the gauntlet of emotions running through him "I thought you didn't want to talk?"

"I didn't... I don't" she sighs standing up.

"Meredith, I-" he shakes his head "I know I have been pushing things lately, but please talk to me okay? Don't just avoid me"

"You push everything" she agrees "I wasn't mad at you today, I was having a bad day and I snapped at you when I shouldn't have. I didn't like the way I felt, but I couldn't stop it... I couldn't make myself not be angry and I was avoiding you so I didn't say anything I would regret. You are so intense lately and I see the looks you give me... and there is a part of me that likes it, that enjoys the way you make me feel..." she runs a hand through her hair and shakes her head "but it's not what I want Andrew. I can't deal with that-"

"Bullshit"

Meredith's jaw drops a little "Andrew!"

"Just because you're scared-"

"Scared?"

"You're pushing me away because you're scared" 

"Of what?" she scoffs.

"You're scared that you might fall in love with me" he starts walking towards her.

"Love?"

"And if you do, if you _are_ then you have more to lose"

"I am not in love with you!"

"What are we doing then?" he brushes her cheek softly with the back of his knuckles.

"I don't know anymore" she sighs, sinking against him.

"Have dinner with me?" he asks.

"Dinner?" she pulls back to look at him.

"Yeah. Dinner. An actual date Meredith"

"Or we could just..." she raises her eyebrows and nods towards the house a little.

"Meredith..."

"Andrew..." she kisses his neck "There is nothing wrong with the way things are now"

"I want more"

"Please don't... not tonight..." she tries to cajole him towards the door.

"I'm just asking for one date Meredith"

She sighs "What is the point of one date?" 

"Because I think there is more here. I think that if we spent any time together not having sex you might realize that. Maybe think of me as more than just a way to get off"

She takes a step back "Why now? Why tonight?"

"Because even if you don't know how you feel, I lo-"

"Don't you dare" Meredith interrupts him. 

"Mer-"

"No! You don't get to do this tonight" she starts to push past him but he tugs her close.

"I love you" he kisses her then until she can barely stand "I love you, but this isn't fun. I want more and if you aren't willing to even try, you need to walk away"

"Andrew, please, not tonight... I _need_ you tonight"


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I posted the first chapter and took a nap... then I knew what needed to happen next instead of what I thought was going to happen... 
> 
> I need sustenance and to help hubby prep our room to paint... I don't expect to write anything else tonight, but my muse has been a jealous wench lately so who knows...

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_"Andrew, please, not tonight... I need you tonight"_

_"Me or my bed?" he asks a little put out._

_"I am not ready to talk about today. I just- please?" she kisses his neck again, but he steps back and shakes his head._

_"I meant it, I am sorry, but I can't keep doing this. Call me if you figure it out Meredith" he tells her before adjusting his bag and heading inside._

The scene keeps running through her head. Sitting at a stop light halfway between his place and home Meredith smacks the wheel with her hand. _What the hell_? She can't believe she threw herself at him like that. Practically _begged_ him... and he shut her out. She isn't ready to go home and face her sister and answer questions so she throws on her left blinker. No one behind her anyway. _Why is this light taking so long_? She hits the button to call Alex on speakerphone just as the light changes. "Hey, are you busy?"

"Just hanging out at home, I am a little buzzed though so if it's work related..." Alex answers

"No, I just- Do you mind if I swing by?" she asks "I had a crappy day"

"Come on over... We've got beer- What?" he pauses and she can hear Jo in the background "Okay, we have _one_ beer and Jo is willing to save it for you, but if you want more you should grab it"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

When she first showed up she had been a little annoyed to realize Link was there too, though the atrocious new haircut softened the blow a little. After a couple beers a while though listening to him and Jo telling stories and just being around people that didn't care that she didn't want to talk about her day made her feel a little better. She even attempted a rescue of Link's haircut, but it was a bit of a lost cause. 

"It's not too short yet" she gives up laughing "Maybe you won't need an actual buzz cut"

"Thank you for trying, maybe I shouldn't have let her near the scissors to begin with?" 

"Hey! You're the one that showed up here with a giant chunk of bangs missing!" Jo speaks up from the couch "I wasn't the one who messed it up to begin with"

"What did happen?" Meredith asks him, her curiosity now piqued.

"A patient" he offers with a shrug.

"A patient? Were you attacked? Did you report it?"

"Not like that" Jo pipes up again "Don't let him be all modest, he did it for a scared kid"

"A kid?" 

"Yeah" Link takes another pull off his beer "He's going to need chemo, he was concerned about his hair..."

"Oh" she doesn't know what to say about that so she awkwardly goes in search of the broom. After sweeping up she decides she is ready to head home "Hey, I think I'm going to head out. It's late, and I'm kind of tired"

"Yeah, I'm kind of beat too" Alex agrees "Do you need a cab?"

"I'm all right, I didn't actually even finish my second" she assures him.

"I think I could probably use one though" Link mentions "I'm exhausted"

"Meredith can give you a ride" Jo volunteers her "He lives right on your way anyway"

"Jo, Mer doesn't want to play taxi" Alex chides, and then whispers in his wife's ear "Stop trying to play matchmaker" 

"No, it's... fine" Meredith agrees.

"Are you sure?" Link asks her "I don't want to put you out at all"

"It's fine" she assures him again before saying bye to Alex and Jo and heading out.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Oh damn it!" he curses as she pulls up by his apartment.

"What's wrong?"

"I forgot I- hold on" he unlocks his phone and makes a phone call only to immediately hang up "straight to voicemail, crap"

"What?" she asks warily.

He sighs "I just realized I lent Nico my car, and forgot to grab my house key" 

She just shakes her head and puts the car in drive "What's your next plan?"

"I can crash at the hospital- I can call a cab, you don't have to take me..." but he realizes she isn't heading for the hospital anyway "Where, uh?"

"I have a couch" she shrugs "I've been told once or twice it's more comfortable than the on call mattresses"

"You don't have to do that"

"I don't have energy to worry about a better plan right now" she tells him "Believe me, you're not the first one I've let crash on it, and you probably won't be the last"

"Thanks" he says as they pull in the driveway "If you don't want to get dinner, maybe lunch sometime?"

She shuts off the car and turns to him "I like you- as a person, more than I thought I would, but I am kind of seeing someone. I really am not interested in dating"

"Okay" he says "I respect that, how about you let me pay for your crappy cafeteria lunch tomorrow as a friend, as a thank you for letting me borrow the couch?"

"I suppose, as long as it's crappy" she says laughing.

They walk to the house still making jokes about the crappy cafeteria food.

She stops as she unlocks the door and turns to him "Hey, I have sleeping kids so we need to keep it down and-" she gets distracted by an odd lock of hair she hadn't noticed was extremely out of place compared to the rest. She brushes it aside "Well there's another one we missed" she smiles "You definitely need to get that fixed in the morning"

They go inside and she shuts the door and grabs him a blanket and pillow out of the closet "I don't have to be in until 11 tomorrow, do you need a ride earlier?"

"No, that's perfect. You don't have a charger I can borrow do you?"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

As she gets ready for bed she realizes she actually took Andrew's advice and told Link she was seeing someone. Granted she didn't say she was seeing Andrew, and she hadn't exactly said she had a boyfriend... but still, the implication was there and she didn't hate it. Maybe she overreacted to the idea of an actual date. She can't really blame him for not wanting to sleep with her after he told her he loves her and she basically just wanted sex out of him. She would have done the same thing... she _had_ done the same thing to a college boyfriend actually. Of course that had been how things ended between them. That thought gives her a pang of regret about how crappy she had been treating Andrew. She might not be in love with him, but she cares about him, genuinely enjoys his sense of humor. Maybe she even is scared... She looks at the clock and decides it's too late to do this tonight. But promises herself she will make time to talk to him tomorrow... _Or just ask him out on an actual date so he knows I am serious_.


	3. Chapter 3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Meredith and Link are out early after the kids leave for school. She drops him off at a salon and walks down the road to grab a muffin from a new bakery and call Andrew. She figures he is still sleeping when he doesn't answer. He has a shift that afternoon, she will almost certainly see him at some point even if he isn't on her service today. She can apologize and ask him out. 

While she waits she reads a book on her phone and enjoys the sunshine. When Link finishes his haircut he joins her and they're so impressed with the muffins that she grabs a box to bring to work.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

_Andrew had wanted kick himself almost immediately after she left. An hour on the phone listening to Carina tell him he was wasting his time being hung up on a woman who didn't deserve him hadn't made him feel better. He disagreed with his sister's assessment of Meredith and wanted to go tell her that. He managed another couple hours of not making an idiot of himself before giving up and heading to her house. He wasn't sure what he was going to do, but he needed to see her. Needed to let her have her own way, at least tonight. She had been so upset. She told him it wasn't a good day and he hadn't listened. When her car wasn't in the yard he sat there a couple minutes. Maybe she was called back to the hospital? He can talk to her tomorrow. He had driven down the road to turn around when she pulled into the yard. He's glad he didn't miss her and is planning on pulling in when he sees Link get out of the car with her. Dumbfounded and not wanting to crash he pulled off and watched them walk laughing to the door. He knows she said it was casual, but really? Andrew tried to make himself believe she hadn't just gone out and picked up the next guy, but she stopped in the doorway and smiled at him and touched his hair. Five minutes later the house was dark and Andrew just sat there staring. They'd been together for months and he didn't get to stay over. Did she really just decide it was fine for Link to stay over that fast. Then the gut punch thought 'Maybe this isn't new...' He waited a couple more minuted to get himself under control before driving home._

When he gets to work he's determined to avoid Meredith _and Link_ as much as possible. Of course that proves easier said than done. Not even ten minutes after he gets there Qadri hands him a muffin "You have to try these" she smiles at him "Drs Grey and Lincoln brought them in this morning and I saved you one"

He wants to scream at the ridiculousness. Has he been this blind? Instead he thanks Qadri and after she leaves he drops the muffin on the nurses' station and puts on his doctor face and goes to check on his patients.

He does his best to remain professional while working with them. Flor is being discharged so she's only there for a few minutes. Outside the room Meredith stops him "Do you think we can talk?"

"I'm not sure that's a very good idea right now Dr. Grey" he starts to turn and she puts her hand on his elbow.

"Please? I think we should, I wanted to-" 

"Excuse me Dr Grey?" the nurse from the station interrupts her and while she is distracted Andrew makes his escape into his next patient's room, only to run into Dr Lincoln.

"Hey DeLuca! Have you met JJ?" Link is super friendly as always. 

As Andrew greets young JJ and reviews the case he wonders if Link knows. Has he known all along or if it matters to him. He mostly pushes it aside though to talk with his patient's mother and actually do his job. He stops to answer one last question for them as Link leaves the room, so he's just in the doorway when he hears Link "Hey Grey are you ready to grab lunch yet?" and the sound of her laughing.

He takes his lunch in the courtyard where he won't have to watch them together. He's about halfway through his sandwich when chairs behind him scrape and he hears Jo's voice "Aren't they cute together though? I knew they'd hit it off"

Andrew abandons his lunch. He's not hungry anymore and he doesn't need to listen to their friends _her friends_ talk about her and Link together. The more he sees the stupider he feels. He goes back to work determined to get through the day without a breakdown.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alex sighs as Andrew makes his quick escape "Jo..."

"What?" 

"Seriously, stop trying to play matchmaker. Meredith is already seeing someone"

"Since when?" 

"Since our wedding. She doesn't want everyone to know"

"But you knew" Jo narrows her eyes at her husband "Why didn't you tell me?" 

"Because she asked me not to. She only told me a couple days ago"

Alex makes a mental note to himself to apologize to Meredith, let her know what happened so she can deal with it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Andrew is finishing up the last of his charts, successfully having avoided seeing Meredith and Link for the rest of his shift, even if he hadn't completely managed to stop thinking about them, when Qadri stops him "We're heading over to Joe's, you should join us"

"I'm not really sure I'd make good company tonight Qadri. I-"

"Dahlia" she blurts out.

"What?" it's been a long day and he doesn't realize for a second.

"My name is Dahlia" she's feeling brave "and since you're going to come hang out with us, away from work, you should use it" she smiles at him.

Andrew is conflicted. He really doesn't want to be around anyone just now, but going home alone sounds pretty miserable too. The other thing bothering him though is that it finally kicks in his brain that she's not just being friendly, she's flirting with him, and has been all day... then he realizes he's been missing this for more than a day and he feels even more clueless about what the heck is going on in his life and he feels bad that he might have been giving her false hope accidentally. She's a nice girl and he doesn't want to hurt her. _She is a nice girl dumbass, and she likes you. Be honest with her_.

"Dahlia" he concedes "I'm sorry, I've been distracted today, I could really use a drink and some company... My relationship kind of fell apart last night. I could use a friend"

She's a little surprised this went as well as it did. She had been starting to wonder if he was clueless or disinterested, so the fact that he was seeing someone makes her feel a little better. Just breaking up might mean he's not over her yet _I hope it was a her, otherwise I really am stupid_ , but drinks could be good, and if he doesn't see her now then she knows that it's time to move on.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Inspiration for Qadri's cluelessness about who is dating or not and her crush on Andrew taken from the show's version of Jo and Alex's wedding
> 
> This didn't go how I expected it to, but end game is still the same... this is just a distraction of course. And for any Qadri fans, I promise to go easy on her.


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> can you technically actually write fan fiction of your own story? because that's what I was doing the first couple days... I wrote myself the version I wanted to write, even though I knew it wasn't where I needed this to go... ughhhh.... yeah anyway... if you were wondering why this took a little longer. That and kind of painting myself into a corner I didn't intend to a little bit, which lead to this being a bit more angsty than I had actually intended, with way more jealousy than I think anyone was looking for. Though I did manage to take it down a bit. It seriously needed reeling in lol... 
> 
> also... I have a second interview today!! I am excited and want to hurl at the same time. I think it should go well, but that doesn't make me less anxious.

Before Andrew and Dahlia are even to the bar he gets a text from Meredith 'Can we please talk? Over dinner?' It doesn't escape his notice that she asked him to dinner, and yesterday the idea would have thrilled him. Tonight it sits in his gut like a lead weight. He can't imagine what she wants that she would even bother at this point, and he doesn't think he really wants to know. They spot Helm and Parker at a table already and join them. He tries to be in the moment, but the text is nagging at his brain. No... There is no good reason to put himself through this. He sends back a text 'I think we said everything last night' before shutting off his phone and turning his attention to the people he's with. 

An hour later he and Dahlia have gone to the bar to grab the next round. While they wait they make small talk. He's more aware of her than he's ever been before and if he wasn't still so worked up over Meredith he might have taken a chance. Dahlia is pretty, and very funny, and definitely flirting with him. Her hand has found his lower arm as she talks about her new dog and part of him really wishes he could just be here in this moment with her. He shakes his head at her "I'm sorry, I'm just-" he moves his arm and sighs.

"You're in love with her?"

"Yeah"

"Then go be with her, work it out" Dahlia's take on it is simple.

"She doesn't love me back, and she's already seeing someone else" 

"There's no way he's better" she blushes a little.

He shakes his head again. Dahlia deserves better than anything he has to offer her right now.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Three hours later he finds himself on Meredith's porch. Exactly where he told himself a dozen times tonight he wouldn't be. She opens the door in her pajamas, looking more than slightly peeved. She doesn't say anything. At this point she has no idea what is going on in his head and she's too tired for guessing games.

"I know it's late, but I couldn't come before I had a chance to sober up a little. I-" the words he had thought he wanted to say don't come. He steps into her space and brushes the sides of her face like he wants to grab her and kiss her, which he does _want_ to do, but instead he leans his forehead against hers.

Meredith's frustration with him makes her want to pull back, but she missed him today. She had started the day with such high hopes and then everything went south so fast. After a few seconds she pulls him into a hug and takes a deep breath.

"I know I got too serious. I-"

"No. You were right, about me being scared. I am always scared. I am a lightning rod for disaster. But I try my best not to let fear run my life" she leads him over to the porch swing "Do you know for _years_ we thought this was broken?" she toes the ground lightly to make the swing go just a little "My father is dying"

Andrew wants to say something comforting, but he realizes he knows very little about her personal life or how any of this is connected. He didn't even know the man was still alive. Finally he settles on pulling her close and just a simple "I'm sorry"

"I haven't spoken to him in years. After my parents' divorce he disappeared entirely from my life..." she gives the swing another little nudge "I didn't even know I had a sister- at all... until I ran into him at the hospital because Molly had been admitted"

"Molly? Was she-"

"No. No, Molly is..." Meredith makes a hand gesture Andrew isn't entirely sure he understands "I don't even know where she is. We have never been close- I am not easy to get close to, and she... has her own life. Lexie is the one who died, the one whose name graces the walls of the hospital. It took me a long time to warm up to her too. She was always so cheerful and optimistic, and I hated it, but that and her relentless persistence were what kept her determined to make things work, until finally I realized I really had a sister. And while Lexie was here, Thatcher... tried... but after she died he disappeared and I haven't seen him since her funeral. Yesterday, I was told he was dying... and I don't want to care, but Lexie- Lexie would care and so there is guilt and a whole slew of emotions I don't know how to handle and I just..."

"I didn't make it better. I'm sorry I didn't take the time to listen"

"I didn't want to talk. You weren't wrong that all I wanted yesterday was physical intimacy, but it wasn't just about 'getting off'... I wanted to be with _you_ I wanted you to hold me, probably more than I wanted sex" she turns and looks up at him "I thought I lost you today"

"I wanted to talk to you last night... I came to talk to you..." he can't finish.

"I wasn't home? I hung out with Alex and Jo and-" she sits up "You saw me come home?" it's barely a question and the flick of his eyes to her door confirm her suspicions. She turns around fully, straddling him so he has nowhere else to look but at her " _Nothing_ happened with Link. He was already at Alex's when I got there, and we hung out. I offered him a ride home, but he was locked out so I let him crash on my couch"

Andrew closes his eyes and tries to believe "You touched his hair"

She would laugh if this wasn't so serious "Did you see his hair today? He massacred his own hair for JJ yesterday, and then Jo made it worse. I tried to help, but it was a lost cause. I dragged him to the salon this morning... But I wasn't flirting with him. At no point was I even close. I told him I am seeing someone"

He finally allows the hope some reign "You did?"

"I did, and I wanted to tell you this morning. I wanted to ask you out. Because you do mean a lot to me. I know I'm asking for a lot, but can you be patient with me?"

"Do I get to take you out?" he asks.

"Yes, as long as we take my car" she kisses him "I need to go back in before I freeze... and I am not ready for you to stay, I wish I was. Before that happens though we need to work out a couple things"

"Like what?"

"Are you ready to meet my kids?"

"I've met your kids before Meredith"

"Ah, no... my kids met Aunt Maggie's sad friend. I've never introduced them to anyone I was dating"

"Never?" 

"I almost did once, but no, it's never gone that far"

"If you're ready for that then I am"

"Give me a few days to get my kids used to the idea that I am dating someone, and then we can figure out when you meet them, because the first time they do can't be while you're sneaking down the stairs" 

"Whatever you need"

She kisses him again "You can't shut me out again, not like that. If you need space tell me, but don't- I had no idea what was wrong"

"I will promise to talk to you, if you promise to talk to me"

"I can live with that" she kisses his neck.

"I thought you said you were cold"

"You're plenty warm" she says as she runs her hands under the back of his shirt.

"If I'm not allowed inside and you don't want to put on a show for the neighbors you really need to stop Mer-"

"Laundry room"

"What?"

She stands and pulls him to his feet "If you want... It's better than the supply closets, and there's a door, so- I'm sorry, this really sounds bad. I don't mean-" she starts to apologize as she realizes it sounds like she just wants his body again, but he understands and cuts her off with a kiss.

"It's perfect for tonight Mer"

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few days later 

Andrew is at the bar with a friend of his when the interns come in for drinks. He makes his way over and snags Dahlia away to the bar for a minute "Dahlia, I have someone I wanted you to meet. This is my friend Cam"

"It's nice to meet you Cam" she smiles at him politely "I'm glad you worked things out" she says to Andrew before starting to turn back to the interns, but Andrew catches her arm lightly.

"I did work things out _with my girlfriend_ this is my _buddy_ Cam. He's and EMT, he likes dogs and he's single. He's really nice, and I thought maybe..." 

This time the smile she gives him is genuine.

"Hey Cam, I need to head out. I am meeting my girlfriend's kids tonight, but I think Dahlia would love to hear about the time you managed to get stuck in the tree"

"You can't go telling people that!" his buddy scolds him, but not very sincerely since the woman sitting next to him now actually seems interested.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The story itself resolved itself a lot better than I thought it was going to when I started this last chapter. 
> 
> final installation of the series... soon-ish... 
> 
> Interview went well :) I have orientation tomorrow!! Having a job might slow my writing speed down a bit.


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